Grade 4 Alberta Namedropper
Bring our field trip to your school and your students will discover the many fascinating stories and legends about Alberta's settlement. Developed and presented by accredited teachers, our one hour and thirty minute presentation is designed to complement the new Grade 4 Social Studies curriculum components. Through in-class visits, students gain an appreciation for Alberta's history, by learning about our people, our places and our stories.
What do students learn?
Did you know that the name of each place in Alberta has a story behind its name? Our Alberta Namedropper school program was developed to introduce grade four students to how places are named and why it is important to do so. For example, a place can be named after an event that happened in the past, its physical appearance, or after a person or a place from another land. When Hatmandu from Medicine Hat is introduced, students soon discover the mysteries behind many of his body parts such as Elbow (River), Hairy (Hills) and Thigh (Hill Creek).
Grade 4 students rehearsing class presentation
Photo: Bruce Fleming Images
Why learn about place names in Alberta?
This is an important area of study for all people living in Alberta and in Canada. If we wish to preserve our history and teach our children about the exploration and settlement of Alberta, the stories and legends of how places in our province were named are a good place to start. Places, of course, include mountains, rivers, lakes, creeks, waterfalls, cities, towns, hamlets, villages, hills and plains. Our interactive presentation gets students involved and thinking about their Alberta heritage.
Read what teachers have to say about us
- I read about the presentation in a magazine and it was worth every moment. The article did a great job describing it... thanks!
- The presentation actively involved the students in a meaningful learning opportunity. It spurred their interest in the history of Alberta and its geography. It made them think about their province in a very different way
- Well done! Excellent materials, activities and a terrific manner with the kids
- (the presentation)...was right at our level and related to what we are doing in Social Studies
- The handouts are very useful and greatly appreciated
- ...I will book next year
How do I book a presentation?
- each Namedropper presentation is approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes in length
- class size is limited to 30 students per presentation
- a classroom visit, including teacher resource material starts at $90.00
- Ask about our special rates for back-to-back multiple presentations in the same school
- Call 780-431-2349 or fax: 780-427-3956 or to book your presentation
- At this time, the Namedropper is available to Edmonton, Red Deer, Calgary and surrounding areas.
Name That Town:
The Alberta Namedropper Programme tells
Grade Four students the stories behind our placenames
by Mikell Montague
Fall 2001 Legacy Magazine: Heritage to the Next Generation Section. pp. 39-40
Knowing the name of a place is important. Knowledge is power. But answer some of those W-questions (Who or what was it named after? Where is that place, anyway? Why choose that name?) and something magic could happen. The name becomes more than a word on a map or a sign, a sound that we make to identify a place. It becomes a living link, connecting us with the interactions of people with people, and people with the environment--that is our history. The presenter is intent on making this connection when they meet with Grade Four classes as part of the Namedropper Programme. They spend about one and a half hours with each group. Time speeds by.
We introduce students to the fictional character Hatmandu, the hatmaker from Medicine Hat, who needs to find missing body parts represented by some of Alberta's geographical names (like Elbow River). Then they practise categorizing names by origin: among them Aboriginal names, French names, people (famous or otherwise), and geographical features. We slip in stories about many of the names we present, skillfully incorporating both planned and unplanned humour, with enthusiasm which is both obvious and contagious.
The students have their turn, too. Building on games the students might have played previously (such as Charades, Pictionary, Clue and Balderdash), they assigns group tasks. Each group rehearses how it will lead the class in playing its games to guess one or more geographical names. The buzz is productive as kinks are worked out, plans are laid. Then the groups lead the class. Everyone is involved. Everyone has participated.
Namedropper is sponsored by the Friends of Geographical Names of Alberta Society. Designed to complement the new Grade Four social studies curriculum-which concentrates on Alberta's geography, people and places; past and present--, it was developed by education students in the 1990's and piloted in the spring of 2000. It has been delivered to approximately 1000 classrooms since. Response from teachers in those classrooms has been enthusiastic. Students are motivated, the presenters are skilled, the curriculum fit is gratifying, they say. It is know offered in Edmonton, Red Deer and Calgary areas.
Experiencing the Namedropper can make students feel connected to places in Alberta they have never visited, feel more involved with those places they have. When they see the names on those large green signs on Alberta's major highways, they will remember stories of Hatmandu's body parts and local geography, of Aboriginal history and famous people. Perhaps they'll share them with their families.